6 Ways to Cope with the Emotional Side Effects of Selling a Home
Relocations are complicated and stressful per se. There is a whole range of different feelings that change all the time. Naturally, moving into a new home brings a lot of great emotions, such as expectation, happiness, and excitement. However, it can't be an easy task to simply walk out of your old home, lock the door forever, and stay indifferent. Especially not when that house or flat is about to become someone else's home after you put it on the market. Since the experience has shown that home-selling is a process that requires time and some preparation, we offer you some help. Here are several ways to cope with the emotional side effects of selling a home.
1. Do not make any steps until you feel ready
Although you can never say that you are fully prepared for something like selling a home, there are still points where you will feel more sure about the decision that you have made.
Having second thoughts is natural. There is nothing like a perfect decision. However, you should never forget why you decided to sell in the first place. Therefore, to keep balance, and deal with the potentially strong emotions at that point, create a shortlist of the reasons, and let them be your driving force. And, most importantly- give yourself time. Don't make any serious decisions or steps until you feel ready for them.
Sadness is a normal reaction when leaving your old home.
2. Good organization is crucial
Creating a good plan you can rely on is essential in reducing stress. You should think about all the steps of the relocation process on time and organize everything well. That leaves you way more free time to deal with your emotions later on when the whole chaos begins.
Think in advance. Calculate the relocation costs, choose and hire the appropriate real estate agent, and create checklists. All these steps will help you take control of the situation. You will feel self-confident, and it will be easier for you to make decisions.
On the other hand, spending time on all these things will help your mind feel busy. You'll go from task to task, focusing on solving current issues. All the possible negative emotions about selling your home will appear now and then, but, being busy, you won't have time to overthink them.
3. Staging your home may lead to detaching
Once you decide to stage your home, you must start removing most of your items from it. The staging process requires a home to be neutral, with the least personal items possible. That means no family photos on shelves, clothes on your sofa or chairs, or toys on the floor.
You should start with packing and decluttering. The relocation process is an ideal time to downsize your possessions, too. There are several ways to declutter your home before the move, which will help you step into a new home and new life more easily. Moreover, once you move away most of your possessions, the space will automatically feel a bit strange. That's the first step towards detaching. Therefore, the earlier you decide to stage your home, the earlier you separate yourself from the space. Just pack your memories, and take them with you.
Home staging should start as early as possible.
4. Avoid being present at open houses- one of the ways to cope with the emotional side effects of selling a home
When your home enters the open house process, it's time for you to go off the stage. Your presence when potential buyers come to see the place is not only excessive, but it can also have some negative impact on your emotional state. All you need to do is to get your home ready for the staging process, and then you should go away and leave things to the professional. A good real estate agent here is the key. He is the one who knows exactly what to say and when to say it. Some of the buyers' comments or questions will not be flattering; however, although you may consider that as an insult of a kind, a real estate agent will know how to handle it well. So, the best thing you can do is to leave them to do their work.
5. Focus on your future
When massive changes have to be made, the direction you should focus on is the future, not the past. And this is one of the top ways to cope with the emotional side effects of selling a home.
The best thing you can do to distract yourself from the home-selling process is to start making plans. Whether it will be a search for your new home or organizing your relocation, every future arrangement is better than lamenting about the past. What's more, as professionals from State to State Move suggest, when it comes to moving, it is never too early to start with preparations. So, you will kill two birds with one stone.
6. Don't take anything too personally
It is common that sellers can never consider the price of their home as too big. Its emotional value should not be measured at all. Therefore, giving a realistic price is something most sellers do not manage to do. Moreover, they even get insulted by the lower offers the buyers may suggest. However, you should try to distance yourself from this point of view and realize that all the things that buyers do serve to achieve the best possible and the lowest price for their future home. Just don't take anything personally.
On the other hand, you should also expect that a buyer requests you do some repairs or add some changes to your home before you come to the final deal. Things like that happen. However, it'd be better to leave your agent to deal with it.
The real estate agent is the best help.
Home selling is usually associated with strong emotions and hard decisions. Thus, you should realize your feelings and accept them if you want to cope with the emotional side effects of selling a home. Normally, you feel nervous, sad, and confused by leaving. However, keep thinking positively, and don't let that distract you.
